‘A Klingon Christmas Carol’ Attacks A Holiday Classic (Video)

First a Klingon opera, now this. Klingon (the language) sure has a lot of traction for one invented for a Star Trek movie in the ’80s. And this is also a non-Christianized version of the Dickens classic, because as I learned from the story, the Klingons killed their gods. Douglas Belkin reports in the Wall Street Journal:

The arc of “A Klingon Christmas Carol” follows the familiar Dickens script: An old miser is visited on a hallowed night by three ghosts who shepherd him through a voyage of self-discovery. The narrative has been rejiggered to match the Klingon world view.

For starters, since there is neither a messiah nor a celebration of his birth on the Klingon planet of Kronos, the action is pegged to the Klingon Feast of the Long Night. Carols and trees are replaced with drinking, fighting and mating rituals. And because Klingons are more concerned with bravery than kindness, the main character’s quest is for courage.

it’s not surprising, the virtues of courage, honor and integrity have been under attack as being out of touch
and outmoded for quite some time, it’s quite natural for people to have a longing for what they perceive as lost. Honor has been replaced with nationalism, integrity with subservience, and courage with fear.

Yes, you touch very directly on the difference between ‘courage’ and ‘brutality’, which are often confused.

I have only a passing acquaintance with the Klingon mythology of Star Trek, but I guess I always thought of them as savage monsters. They always seem to be continually duelling and fixating on lineage–not able to appeal to a higher set of moral principles and nonsectarian institutions to resolve disputes.

True courage, however, I associate with rejection of those primitive ideals, and a willingness to stop the damn flag waving and be a decent compassionate human being.

in later years they seemed to make klingons an analog for aspects of Bushido, with a savage side.
For true courage and honor you must restrain yourself and have a higher Ideal you seek to serve, even if you don’t match that ideal. If things like this interest you should check out this podcasthttp://chivalrytoday.com/

it’s not surprising, the virtues of courage, honor and integrity have been under attack as being out of touch
and outmoded for quite some time, it’s quite natural for people to have a longing for what they perceive as lost. Honor has been replaced with nationalism, integrity with subservience, and courage with fear.

Yes, you touch very directly on the difference between ‘courage’ and ‘brutality’, which are often confused.

I have only a passing acquaintance with the Klingon mythology of Star Trek, but I guess I always thought of them as savage monsters. They always seem to be continually duelling and fixating on lineage–not able to appeal to a higher set of moral principles and nonsectarian institutions to resolve disputes.

True courage, however, I associate with rejection of those primitive ideals, and a willingness to stop the damn flag waving and be a decent compassionate human being.

in later years they seemed to make klingons an analog for aspects of Bushido, with a savage side.
For true courage and honor you must restrain yourself and have a higher Ideal you seek to serve, even if you don’t match that ideal. If things like this interest you should check out this podcasthttp://chivalrytoday.com/